Deceptive Advertising

Eli Lilly and Zyprexa

A 2006 New York Times article revealed the existence of company memos and emails indicating that pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly concealed results correllating use of their antipsychotic drug Zyprexa with significant weight gain and increased blood sugar, both of which are known risk factors for diabetes. Emails expressing fears over Zyprexa's links to health risks had been circulating among employees as early as 1995. Representatives of the company had repeatedly denied any links between Zyprexa and diabetes since the drug was introduced in 1996.

Thousands of lawsuits were filed against Lilly following the Times article, including private suits and multistate, collaborative efforts by attorneys general and federal prosecutors. The company has so far been forced to pay out over $1 billion in damages.

Pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca was revealed to have been planning since 2000 the marketing of unapproved uses for their antipsychotic drug Seroquel, considered to be a competitor to Zyprexa. While doctors are allowed discretion in prescribing medication for off-label use, such marketing is illegal.

Yaz birth control advertising

Attorney General Bill McCollum of Florida led an interstate effort against Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals to correct misleading advertising for the birth control pill Yaz.

"Miracle" Diets

In 1996, Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal and psychologist Lisa G. Berzins, who has worked extensively in promoting healthy nutritional habits and body image, drafted the nation's first statewide truth in dieting law, which was subsequently passed by the legislature and signed by the governor. The law prohibits companies from marketing claims about the efficacy of diets without scientific evidence and restricts their ability to market untested and unhealthy diets. Another law, which required fuller disclosure on the part of diet product producers regarding the time and expenses required by the product to take effect among other consumer protection regulations, was also supported by Blumenthal and Berzins and was passed in 1997.

Kellogg's Settlement

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) settled charges with Kellogg Company over an ad campaign that claimed that children who ate Kellogg's Frosted Mini Wheats cereal experienced a dramatic increase in attentiveness. The settlement will prevent Kellogg both from making misleading claims in their advertising and from misrepresenting the results of scientific studies, in addition to setting record-keeping provisions through which the FTC may monitor compliance.

Airborne Health

Pennsylvania Attorney General Tom Corbett settled led a multistate effort against Airborne Health for deceptive advertising for their dietary supplements. Airborne's advertisements had made misleading claims about their products' usefulness in fighting cold symptoms.